The Metal Crypt - Warhorde Interview

Interviews Warhorde

Interview with Warhorde

Interview conducted by Cluedo

Date online: August 12, 2005

A big fuck off in the face of trends in metal is what WARHORDE is all about. WARHORDE pays homage to the masters of the genre, back when Black Metal was Black METAL, when we laid down our souls to the gods of Rock 'n' Roll. Read on as we take a trip down memory lane with Paul, the demented soul behind WARHORDE.

What compelled you to form WARHORDE?

Basically my frustration with the current Metal scene. Don't get me wrong, there are some great underground bands and labels around. I feel that Metal has become too incestuous, too many sub genres, too much mixing of styles. But most importantly TOO melodic. How many times do I have to read about the next evolution in Metal? "Buy this CD! 45 Minutes of extremely brutal violent mayhem, yet somehow beautifully melodic and soothing! A must have!!" WHAT THE FUCK?! What happened? Where's the Metal? Give me noise, filth and fury! Hence, the beginning of Warhorde.

What do you get out of WARHORDE? What does the band mean to you?

Warhorde is what I need to do. It's simply the personal satisfaction of making Metal that I want to hear. To me this is fast, furious and filthy METAL be it Black or thrash, the same way it originated, the same way it should have continued!

As WARHORDE's popularity grows, chances are it will be labeled a "retro" band. Is this a fair label?

Personally, I don't see Warhorde's popularity growing at all. Not enough people care to hear real (as far as I'm concerned) Black Metal or Black/Thrash as every one insists on calling it nowadays. "Retro" is another mass media label I despise. There's nothing retro about it. Bands didn't stop playing this type of music. The metal media and labels just refused to acknowledge it after a certain point, it became too "juvenile" for them.

Speaking of labels, how is the search for a record label coming along, that is if you are searching?

I haven't searched for a label. Warhorde will only appeal to an extremely small amount of Metalheads. I can't see any reason why a label, no matter how small or underground, would want to spend the time and money releasing something that clearly would have faired better in 1982 than in 2005. I can't say I wouldn't want to be on a label. It would be a great personal triumph to be validated by one, to know that someone believes in what you're doing.

One criticism of your BLOOD FILTH CHAOS Demo is that the short length of the tracks is a hindrance to the overall listening experience. How do you respond to this and do you plan to correct this on future albums?

It is a major compliant. My only answer is simply this: Play it again, play it over and over until it rattles your brain. I agree that the songs are too short, but it was something I needed to do at the time. When I recorded it I was sick of hearing 5-7 minute songs just sitting there waiting for the "good" parts. It was my way of blasting out the kick ass parts with absolutely no filler. I thought it worked at the time and I still think it works when I listen to it. Let's not forget that Venom, Bathory and a host of other great bands rarely met the 3 minute mark on most of their early songs. I just took it one step further.

If you listen to the "Hellstorm" mp3, you'll hear that the "problem" is being "corrected", or at least worked on. The perfect song length to me is still under 4 minutes, that will never change.

Are you pleased with the overall reaction to the BLOOD FILTH CHAOS Demo?

Hell yes! I'm very proud of Blood Filth Chaos, but I knew the short length and rawness was going to problem. I expected nothing but negativity when I finally decided to post the mp3's, instead I received some very favorable responses.

Are there are plans for WARHORDE to recruit more members? Do you wish to play live?

I've tried through almost 6 months of advertising to get members. All I asked for was that your influences HAD to be Venom, Sodom and Destruction. You would think it would be easy to find 2 other narrow minded Thrash fiends. People called and emailed all day long about their Metallica tribute band, their death metal band, their super grim and necro Black band, their Slipknot inspired nu metal act. It never stopped.

I had no choice but to go it alone. It wasn't what I wanted. If the material becomes strong enough I may try again, I'm a big fan of 3-piece bands.

What are the advantages of WARHORDE being a one man band?<|p>

The biggest advantage is that I only have myself to argue with! I don't have someone yelling at me that we need a claptrack or maraca's during the intro to add atmosphere. The disadvantage is that I only have myself to blame for the wrong choice of riffs or lyrics.

Your cover of the Nuge's Stranglehold suggests that you have eclectic taste in music. Is having a variety of musical sources to call upon important to you or was this just a one-off thing?

I've talked about doing Stranglehold for years with just about every band I was in. None of the fuckers would do it! I like to hang out and play some very early Rock and a lot of NWOBHM type stuff , it helps me get geared up for the filthier stuff. I'm a huge Raven (Neat years only) and Cloven Hoof fan. There will be a few more covers that I'll do that people wouldn't consider "fitting" in Black Metal.

What is it about Post-First wave BM that is so unappealing to you? What do you find appealing about First Wave BM?

The "Second" wave actually had some shining moments in the beginning, then it quickly turned to shit. It just became instantly silly overnight. It became a bunch of posers complaining about too many posers mucking up their scene: "Look at me, I'm 12 years old, wear heavy makeup and take evil photos of myself while strolling in the woods in the dead of winter! Then I go home, give my teddy bear a hug, light a black candle and settle down with my baby sister for some Playstation and Doritos!" It wasn't only the image thing, the music became worse. I know a lot of people will complain that Black Metal isn't about the musicianship of a band, but it is called MUSIC for a reason and should hold some semblance of a tune. The final straw for me was when Black Metal began incorporating Political/Fascist themes in the lyrics, that and BLAST BEATS. I fucking hate blast beats unless I'm listening to Cryptic Slaughter.

Now on the other hand, the first wave had its fair share of posing, but it was done by guys who were usually slightly older and larger than you, drank a case of beer by themselves, carried large axes and would fuck you up in a barfight without thinking twice! Real men making real music. Guys who just loved to Blaspheme and curse up a storm. The most important thing was really that no 2 bands sounded the same. And they were PURE Metal, heavy and aggressive done with a snearing attitude and crushing rhythms!

How disturbing is it to find the new generation of Black/Thrash fans supporting bands like AVERSE SEFIRA and DEMONCY, while writing off HELLHAMMER and SACRIFICE without even listening to them in some cases?

I don't find it that surprising really. It's the same old sheep mentality: Black Metal was created by Mayhem; There was no punk before Green Day; There were no drugged out suicidal musicians making shitty music before Nirvana. No need to look any further for most people. It's the small 10% that refuse to accept what they're told that keep it alive by knowing how important those bands were and still are.

There are critics who wish that Black Metal progress and evolve rather than staying stuck in the Eighties. What do you say to them?

Progress and evolve to what? Where else can it go? We already have 100 sub genres. Black Metal by nature is a regression, a primal urge.

One of the arguments fans of post-First Wave BM put forth is that practitioners of post-First Wave BM are more "ideologically refined" than their predecessors. What are your thoughts on this issue?

I'm probably the wrong person to be asked this. I use the terms Black Metal and Black/Thrash to describe Warhorde because I have to nowadays. If we all go back to the origin we'll find that Black Metal is the name of an album NOT a fucking genre. Venom were defined as Hard Rockers or simply Heavy Metal by the press and fans alike. I have no religious beliefs. The "ideology" of the first wave of Black Metal was simple: Get fucked up, kick ass, go home to watch some horror flicks, drink more and work hard so you could afford a Harley someday.

That being said, I have no time for someone else's philosophy. It's all become one huge convoluted mess. I think it's come to point where most of these people don't even understand what they're trying to convey.

I guess I fall into this new sub genre of "Hollywood" Black Metal. So be it. Hell, Satan, Sacrificing, Christopher Lee, Vincent Price, Boris Karloff!! Long live Black Metal!! Fuck your philosophy. I have my own.

According to many, the state of BM is in decline. Firstly, do you agree with this declaration? If so, what do you think are the contributing factors to BM's sorry state? What could/should be done to raise the quality of contemporary BM?

Of course it's in decline. I've probably come off as being pretty negative about a genre I claim to part of. Again, I really think it has to do with the overwhelming amount of philosophy and politics being injected into it. To quote The New York Dolls, "Everyone's so busy B.S.ing they've forgotten why they're playing". My answer to everything is of course, bring it back to the fundamentals be it first wave or second wave.

That's all the questions I have for you. Thanks for the interview and good luck to you with your future endeavors. Please add any closing statements you like.

Thanks for letting me spout off, I'm sure I just ruined any chances I had of anyone ever listening to Warhorde again! Oh well.

THRASH ON FUCKERS!!

Other information about Warhorde on this site

Review: Blood Filth Chaos

Review: Satanic Lust